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The Guinness World Records 2013 book out Thursday recognizes Zeus of Otsego as its official tallest dog.

The 3-year-old from Allegan County measures 44 inches from foot to shoulder.

Standing on his hind legs, Zeus stretches to 7-foot-4 and towers over his owner, Denise Doorlag. Zeus is a single inch taller than the previous record-holder, Giant George. Zeus had to overcome his fear of the T-square, the tool used to measure him according to Guinness World Records requirements.

Zeus weighs 155 pounds and eats a 30-pound bag of food every two weeks.

Doorlag says she had to get a van to be able to transport Zeus.

Good men sleep peaceably in their beds at night because
rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf.

Great Danes are really nice dogs, but they don't have very long lifespans. There are a lot of genetic problems with them.

There's always the exception. A Great Dane in SR's old neighborhood is over 12. That is really unusual. I've heard the normal life span is from maybe 6-8 years. That would break my heart to lose a dog that young.

It's usually the little dogs who have those long lifespans. Greys generally live to 10 or 12, but one of mine made it to 14.

SR has always wanted one, but a woman in our old neighborhood in St Louis convinced me that they're not the way to go. She wasn't a tiny woman, but was taking a walk and the dog pulled her across the yard and down the street, breaking her leg along the way. He just kept on pulling. They're not for me, love to pet other folks' Danes, but don't want one.

‎" To the world you are just one more person, but to a rescued pet, you are the world."

There's always the exception. A Great Dane in SR's old neighborhood is over 12. That is really unusual. I've heard the normal life span is from maybe 6-8 years. That would break my heart to lose a dog that young.

It's usually the little dogs who have those long lifespans. Greys generally live to 10 or 12, but one of mine made it to 14.

SR has always wanted one, but a woman in our old neighborhood in St Louis convinced me that they're not the way to go. She wasn't a tiny woman, but was taking a walk and the dog pulled her across the yard and down the street, breaking her leg along the way. He just kept on pulling. They're not for me, love to pet other folks' Danes, but don't want one.

My mom's little rat dogs (Yorkies) seem to live forever, which is around 16 years.

My Katie is hanging in there pretty well at 14, but she has a lot of stiffness in her back legs. She still runs around the yard, chasing squirrels and stray cats, so she can't be feeling that badly. She's a dog I adopted from MHS, but the vet thinks she's a norwegian elkhound.